Join us as Shannon takes us through the history of art therapy as a therapeutic discipline and how art therapy is used now in the context of mental health and substance abuse treatment. She will talk about research studies that have lent empirical support to the efficacy of creative arts therapy in healing from mental health conditions. Shannon will also talk about her personal journey revealing how art therapy has helped her in her ongoing recovery from bipolar disorder.

Shannon Flynn Lewis has been working in the mental health field since first diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 17. She has degrees in Psychology, Art Therapy and Counseling and plans to at some point attain a Ph.D. in psychiatric rehabilitation. Shannon has worked for the past 20-some years at the National Institute of Mental Health with people living with schizophrenia, and has also practiced as an art therapist and counselor. She is a long-time NAMI member and in the late 1990s was on the Executive Committee of NAMI's Consumer Council. Shannon believes that everyone living with a mental illness can achieve recovery on their own terms, as she has, with support from family and friends, medical and psychological help, and using creative outlets or other enjoyable activities to express difficult emotions.

We hope that you will join us!

Support NAMI to help millions of Americans who face mental illness every day.

Javascript must be enabled for the correct page displayJavascript must be enabled for the correct page displayJavascript must be enabled for the correct page displayJavascript must be enabled for the correct page display